The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1887-01-20
DELIGHTS OF BINGHAM.
A Town With No Sort of Govern
ment-Terrible Beating
wf.2po ARRAY

Forty or fifty rough looking miners
packed Commissioner McKay's room to
s1ffocation yesterday at A o'clock, when
the examination into the Bingham
beating cases vas resumed. Most OF
missing witnesses were present, among
them the obstreperous DR.. Wood, who
had told Deputy Vandercook to go to
HI, and who had been fined $25 for
his sportiveness by Commissioner Nc
Kay the evening before. The two Fins,
Erickson and Holme, were seated on a
bench together, fresh from the hospital
and pandaged from their chins to the
crowns of their heads. Musselman and
Harrington, the men accused of the
murderous assaults, sat On the same
bench. Mr.. John A. Marshall repre-
sented them and Mr.. Dickson prose-
Gated.
ROBERT HENRY MCCONNELL, the first
witness, said he was at Bourgard's saloon
on the night of the trouble-the 18th;
was not full, and may not have been
sober. He knew very little of the case,
and would tell very little. Mr.. Dickson
seemed to think the latter saw nothing
OF the trouble. and was not on friendly
terms Wit either of the defendants.
JACOB WALLACE said he had seen
Holme and Erickson in the saloon on
the night OF the trouble, and had also
seen Harrington and Musselman there;
had seen Erickson lying on the ground
after the saloon closed, and had heard
Harms ton talking to him, telling him
to get up and go home. Erickson was
moaning and crying to himself Har-
rington said "Get up and go home, or
get up and fight" Harrington after
wards told him that the Fin had drawn
knife on him some months ago, and
for that he had knocked him down; had
seen Musselman and Holme tusslipg
aud had seen Musselman strike him
number of times with q pistol; had
also seen both Harrington and Mussel-
man kick him in the head and face after
he was down.
JAMES LAUcHLIN corroborsted, though
somewhat reluctantly, the above de-
tails, and said he didn't want to see
Holme killed anu he had put his hand
over his head to protect him.
JAMES H. FITZGERALD said Lauchlin
had warned Holme to 60 home several
times and when he wouldn't go he had
struck at him--a statement which made
Lauchlin look a little uncomfortable.
Holme had struck in return; Musse.-
man had shouted out Look out,
Lauchlin, he's got knife. Had seen
no knife, however, but had SEN Mussel-
man go to. work beating Holme over
the head with q gun-the gun was
six or eight inches long. After
the fight, he had heard Hal arlington say
Erickson was one of the gang that had
tried to murder him q year ago; he
would bear the scar to his grave.
Holme, one of the battered defend
ants, said he had a knife in his pocket,
but he did not draw it. On this evidence
the cases were submitted.
] he Commissioner said Musselman
b been before him on former occa-
sion on a similar charge. He and Mr..
Varian had then interceded for him,
a l. Judge Zane had reluctantly released
him payment of costs. After that
,hs had heard of Musselman's being a
terror TO the camp, and of his drawing
gun on several occasions. He was
disposed to make an example of him
and his bonds would be filed at
S 500 on each case. Those OF HaI-
r.neton at 81 COO on each case.
f D Eyan and Owen HogIe signed
for Harrington. NJ. f. Arnett, a min
ing ma \ of responsibility, became
surety FOR MusseIman, and went TO
WORK hunt 1g for another.
There were some lively scenes around
the Q, nm sSioner when the herd of
miners discovered that as far as any
help from him was concerned, they
would have to walk back.
Mr.. Arnett AMI several bystanders in
te e>t2d said the case might have been
hand ed by their own justice and con-
8 able, but the prevailing sentiment was
that these officials were not worth
continental; the constable, a Mr.. Elliot,
seen in Bingham. The truth OF the
matter was, he said, that these mining
camp rows were occurring every week,
and no notice was taken OF
them. One man, he says. has been
killed outright, and several others
hurt worse than the Fins, but no one
made any complaint. A man was ter
ribly beaten in McInnis' place Tuesday
night, be says. but "no fuss was kicked
up about it. and nothing would have
been done in the present case were 1t
not for few men in Bingham who, he
says, are down on Musselman. He is
the only man, he says, who is ever in
terfered with in these brawls. Mr.. Ar
nett let fly good many other tren-
chant facts, in which the name of Il
prominent Loyal Lacquer OF Bingham
and Salt Lake rather unenviably fig
ured. As they did not come out in
court, however, they are suppressed.